Familiar Stranger
by MusicalSymphony
Summary: What do you do, when you've been training your entire life to meet your dream, and it all gets taken away because you've been marked. See Dawn go throught this amazing journey. Erik N./OC
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys, I'm goona start by saying that i own NOTHING OF THE HOUSE OF NIGHT. Only the Characters that i've created such as dawn, drew and other random people. **

Chapter 1¸

Dawn POV

There I was, walking down the hallway towards my second period classroom, when Drew, my best friend since the second grade was walking towards me, his happiest expression showcased across his face.

"Hey Drew, what's up?" I asked him, wondering why he was so happy.

"What would you say if I told you that the Morgan twins totally got in trouble, and now we were in charge of the dance comity for this next Friday's spring fling?" he said happily.

"What the hell is good about that? You know that I don't have the time for anything like that." I asked him giving him a WTF look.

"Ayla is in the comity, and she thinks that it was really nice of me to step up to the plate." He answered.

"In your dreams Drew, she's with Brandon. And besides, she is way out of your league." I told him. Ayla is what the guys call, the hottest person in school, she totally owns the place and lives to make herself feel better than anyone else.

"Not true, you're just saying that because you don't like her. Why don't you like her anyways, Dawn?" Drew asked me.

"Because her and the Morgan twins are some downright mean people. They are all close together and live to hurt other people. How can you not see that?" I asked him.

"She hot, what can I say?" he said, being his totally guy stereotype self. Drew always let other girl's beauty blind him. Let's just say that we are not the most popular people in the school, but we aren't even close to having the same social status as the chest club.

If you were wondering, Dawn is short for Danishia. My parents had the great idea of calling me something that sounds like you're saying Danish. I'm short compared to most of the people in the 10th grade. I have to be, or else my dream is ruined. I'm 16 and I am an elite gymnast, hopefully on my way to the Olympics. Drew is also a gymnast. I love my career.

I have long wavy blondish-brown hair, and blue eyes. I have barely any boobs, which makes me so mad. Drew is taller than me, and he is also 16, but his birthday is in 2 weeks. He has dark brown hair, a very muscular build, and he has hazel eyes. We lived in Boulder, Colorado.

The bell rang indicating then we had to make our way to our next class.

"I'll see you after school." Drew said then walked to his next class. I walked in to my Math class, and sat through the lesson, with a gigantic headache.

The rest of my classes passed by quite quickly but as the day continued to progress, I couldn't help but notice that I was starting to feel worse and worse. I met up with Drew in the parking lot beside his car.

"Ready to go to the gym?" he asked, clearly oblivious to the fact I felt like crap.

"I have to go get my leo." I said

"We'll stop by your house on the way, like we always do." He said with a smile.

"And like I always say, thanks" I said, forcing a smile onto my face. We got into his truck and started driving to my house.

"Mind if I grab a snack while you change?" he asked

"Sure." I said.

"I don't mean to offend you, but you don't look too good. Are you sure you're up to practice today?" He asked.

"I'll be fine." I said.

"Are you sure?" he asked sounding concerned.

"Yes, I'm sure. I'm not feeling the greatest, but I will make it through practice." I said.

"You know that it's important for you to stay healthy. Maybe you should take the day off, and take time to get better." He said.

"I can't miss practice. Michal is raking the girls for nationals next week. This time is critical and you know it." I said stubbornly.

"I just don't want to see you get yourself hurt." He looked me in the eyes while saying that. I hadn't realized that we had pulled up at the gates. I got out and punched in the password letting me into yard. We drove right up to the doors, parking, then he came to open my door for me.

"Thanks" I mumbled. My head was seriously pounding. I rubbed my temples with my fingers as I walked through my front door.

"Aren't you going to go get something to eat?" I asked.

"That can wait" he said. "You really should stay home today." He took his hand and touched my forehead. "You're starting a fever. You should stay here and relax. Michal would understand."

"Damn it! I can't stay here and relax. Nationals are in two months." I said to him.

"I know they are in two months, and this is big for you because it would be your first time competing as a senior, but you have to take it easy!" he said, just as stubbornly.

"No. I'm not staying here" I said then walked up to my room to go get my stuff for practice. I went into my bathroom and took two Advil's, and hoped that they would work sooner than later. After I packed my gym-bag, I went downstairs and sat at the island while Drew ate some of the fruit salad that Mathilda, our maid had prepared for me. I also saw the note that said my mom was gone on what I preferred to call her business trip, and wouldn't be back until the end of the week.

"You want some?" he asked pointing towards the big bowl filled with a variation of different fruit.

"I'm not really hungry." I said.

"You have to eat. You won't get the chance until later, around 9 o'clock." He said.

"I said I'm not hungry." I said then I went to the sink and had a glass of water.

"You seriously should stay here." He tried again.

"No!" I practically shouted at him, since he was really starting to make me mad.

He suddenly looked extremely serious. "Dawn, can you please stay here? For me?" he asked.

I snorted and said "Why should I do anything for you?" I asked.

"Because, who has been your best friend since the second grade?"

"Me" I said.

"Who was there for me when I got that nasty stomach flu last year, and the year before that?"

"Me." I said again.

"And who knows me better than anyone else in the whole world, and would do anything to help me."

"Me." I said again.

"Then can you _please_ help me by staying here for today and not have me worrying about you." He said serenely.

"But I can take care of myself. And _if_ I stay here, what would I do." I said to him, curious to see his answer.

"Well, I could stay with you and we could watch re-runs of that horrible show that you love, what's it called again?" he said teasingly

"It's called Vampire Diaries, and it's most definitely not horrible!" I said defensively.

"Prove it." He said,

"You know we don't have the time! Practice starts in 30 minutes, and an episode is 1 hour." I said.

"I won't bring you." He said.

"I'll get my personal driver to bring me." I told him.

"I already called Michal and it fine with him if you're out sick. He said to rest." He said guiltily.

"You did what!" I yelled at him.

"I called Michal. Go watch TV, or whatever girls do when they are sick. I'm not leaving until you are properly taken care of." He said.

"But you need to practice too. We both have to make it to Nationals together. That's been the plan for years!" I told him.

"I also told Michal that I would be taking care of you, so you're stuck with me for the rest of the day." He said with a big goofy smile.

"You dork." I said then gave him a little shove.

"Ouch. For someone who is still sick, you still pack quite a punch." He said rubbing the spot where I had hit him.

"Sorry." I said then looked down.

"What do you want to do?" he asked.

"We could go run the treadmill." He gave me a look that said _not even in your dreams_. I frowned and look at him and asked. "Well, what do you want to do?"

"We could go in your massive living room and watch that dumb show re-runs?" he said. I knew he was talking about the Vampire Diaries.

"But you hate that show." I said.

"But you're sick, and you need to rest," he came closer "I really care about you and you need to get better, or else we won't make it to Nationals together, side by side. You've always been there for me, and you've watched endless hours of family guy with me when I was sick, so it's also my time to return the favour."

"Thanks" I said as he pulled me into a gigantic bear hug.

"You want some extra butter popcorn?" he asked already heading to the kitchen.

"Yeah." I said not very loud, but he knew me well enough to know that I always want extra butter popcorn, but because of the sport, I can't have some very often.

We ended up watching The Vampire Diaries up until 6:00, when he started complaining about getting hungry. I walked into the kitchen, up to the fridge and opened the doors only to see that Mathilda hadn't done the groceries yet.

"How do you feel about ordering a good old fashion vegetarian pizza?" I asked. He laughed at my commitment to eat as healthy as possible, which meant I was a vegetarian.

"Or, we could order a meat lovers!" he said sarcastically.

"I'll call the delivery service." I told him.

I went and grabbed my cell phone off the counter. My head was still really hurting, and I recently started coughing a lot.

"Hello, this is the fourth street Domino's, what can we do for you?" asked a guy sounding bored out of his mind.

"I'd like to order a large vegetarian pizza, easy on the cheese."

"Pick up or delivery?" he asked.

"Delivery please." I said politely.

"Address?"

"52, Morrisan Street, East side." I said then started coughing.

"ah, a rich kid. Who are we sending this out to?" he said rudely. I waited a moment to stop coughing and said.

"Um, Dawn, you know, you could sound a little more enthusiastic." I told him directly.

"Okay! That will be 17,86$, and should be there around 6:45!" he said over happily. I laughed then said.

"That was better than Mr. depressive-i-hate-my-job-get-me-out-of-here." I said.

"Whatever" He said then hung up.

I turned towards Drew and said "The pizza will be here in about 45 minutes." I suddenly realized that I wasn't very hungry. I hate being sick.

"You okay, you've been coughing for a while." Drew asked me.

"I've been better" I told him honestly.

The doorbell suddenly rang. "Could that already be the pizza?" I asked. I started making my way to the door. I opened it, but there was no one there. I stepped outside, aware that Drew was watching my every move like a hawk. I turned around and saw someone standing in the middle of my front lawn.

"This is a private property! You should leave before I call the police!" I yelled out trying to sound more intimidating then I felt.

He turned around to face me and merely laughed in my face. Then I saw it. The half crescent moon tattoo, along with an intricate looking tattoo that framed his face. He was a vampyre, but not just any vampyre, he was a tracker.

It was all starting to make sense, why I had suddenly gotten sick, and why the Advil's hadn't helped what-so-ever, and why I continued to feel worse and worse.

It seemed that Drew had noticed the vampyre as well, because he moved if front of me, as if trying to block the tracker. I knew that it wouldn't make any difference.

"Danishia Golding! Night has chosen thee; thy death will be thy birth; hearken to Her sweet voice. Your destiny awaits you at The House of Night." He said loud and clearly, then lifted a finger and pointed it directly at the center of my forehead, as it exploded into an almost unbearable pain.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Dawn

"Dawn! Wake up!" Drew said, shaking me so hard, and waking me up. I was on the ground outside in my front yard; I didn't remember how on earth I'd gotten here.

"What's going on?" I asked, and then realized that my voice had barely come out as slightly more than a whisper.

"Can't be true. Impossible. Not you." I heard Drew mumble to himself.

"What happened?" I asked louder this time.

"There has to be a way to fix this" he said.

"Drew, you need to tell me what the hell is going on." I said which made him look at me surprised.

"Drew, you're givin' me a funny look." I said with a forced chuckle. Then I remembered. I hands immediately flew to my forehead. It didn't feel any different.

"I got up and ran into my house, covering my forehead with my hand, and ignoring the fact that I still utterly felt like crap. I didn't stop until I had gotten up to my private bathroom that was attached to my bedroom.

The girl who stared back at the mirror looked exactly like me, but I couldn't recognise her at all. Sort of like a familiar stranger. I kept staring at this person, well not so much the person, but the outline of a half crescent moon that framed her face. It made her eyes look pretty, like they worked perfectly with the mark since they were almost the same shade of blue.

Her hair looked wilder, as if the color had intensified. She looked beautiful and strong, except for her looking sick and tired. She was short and had almost no boobs. Great. I traced my mark with my finger still trying to believe that this person was actually me. Dawn Golding.

Drew was standing beside me, staring at my mark. I was suddenly scared. I had no freaking idea what I was supposed to do. I knew that kids who got marked went to these schools called House of Night, but I didn't want to give up my life, my dream, everything that I had worked my entire life on.

Out of nowhere, I burst into tears, with giant broken sobs. Drew took me into his arms and told me that everything was going to be alright, even though we both knew that I wouldn't be, no matter what happened.

I looked up from Drew's shoulder and saw the tracker standing in the doorway.

"What the hell do you want!" I screamed at him.

"We must be heading to the House of Night you would like to attend, for you to be able to truly start healing and begin your new life in pursuit of the goddess."

"Where am I going." I asked.

"We are going to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Not so far from here, but it will still be a long trip. We must hurry to gather your things and get a move on" he urged.

"Don't I need permission or something, and what about my life, you can't expect me to just pack up and leave." I said stubbornly.

"As a fledgling, you become emancipated, and you become your own legal person, with no one telling you what to do." He said calmly. I noticed he hadn't reacted in the slightest way to my temper.

"Can I have a few hours to pack up my stuff, say goodbye to the people I care about at least?" I asked him, not very loudly.

"I'll be back in 3 hours. Be ready. You will have a lot to think about if you're not." He said then walked away.

I went into my closet and grabbed my big suitcase. I opened it and started throwing some of my stuff into it. I hadn't even noticed Drew until he almost screamed my name.

"Dawn! You're just going to trust this creep vampyre and go with him?" he said. He looked hurt, and sad.

"I don't really have much choice. It's that or I stay here and keep getting sicker, up to the point where I die. We learnt about this in class last year." I told him.

"What about your gymnastics." He said almost a whisper "We were both supposed to get Olympics Gold next year." He said.

"I don't know." I said.

"This can't be the end." He said.

"I don't want to leave anymore then you don't want me to leave." I told him. The thought of leaving Drew killed me. We grew up together; we were the best of friends. Sure he could be annoying at times, but he was also very sweet and caring. He looked into my eyes and I realized something that made me hurt even more. I loved him. I could see hurt in his eyes as well.

"I don't want you to leave." He said.

"I don't want to leave either, but I have to, or I will die." I told him. I finished throwing my favourite things into my suitcase, and moved on to my duffle bag. I packed all my life essentials. I was about to get my laptop, when Drew stepped right in front of me, blocking my way anywhere.

"I've been wanting to tell you something for a while, but I didn't know how to say it, and I thought I would have more time." He started. "I can't stop thinking about you when you aren't with me. I think about being with you, and it makes me feel so happy, but now I won't ever get the chance to be with you. I know we aren't allowed to see each other with the gym rules, but those don't matter anymore. I think I love you." I hadn't realized that I was crying until he whipped a tear from my cheek.

"I love you too." I said then kissed him, hard on the lips. We kissed until we were both breathless. I tangled my finger in his hair, as he held me tight around my waist. We kissed for what seemed like an endless time, I never wanted this moment to end, but as they say, all good things must come to an end.

I pulled away from his embrace and said "I've got to go." But I really didn't want to have to say these words.

"I know. Will you keep in touch? I can't lose you forever."

"Yes." I said at the same time as the tracker appeared back in my doorframe and said

"No. fledglings are prohibited to have infatuations with humans."

"Why not?" I said, suddenly very angry.

"You'll learn later on." He said which made me really want to hit him. He started taking my things outside, into a sleek black porche that had suddenly appeared in my yard. I walked over to my kitchen, took the phone, and dialled my mother's cell phone number.

"Martha Golding, yours truly, what can I do for you?" she asked sounding a little irritated.

"Hi mom, it's me." I said quietly.

"Honey, I'm in the middle of shouting a scene, can you call later?" she asked.

"Mom, it's important."

"Well, spit it out, everyone is waiting for me to get back on set." She said using her 'I'm Martha Golding' voice.

"It's bad mom…" I said, unsure how I was going to tell her, when I suddenly coughed.

"Are you sick?" she asked with a tone of disgust.

"Kinda mom. Um, I've been marked" I blurted out.

"That's not funny hon, now can you please tell me why you called." She said, really not believing what I just told her.

"I'm serious mom. A tracker came by when I ordered pizza for supper. He marked me, and I have to go to the House of Night of Tulsa, or I'll keep getting sicker up to the point where I will die." As if to prove I was sick, I started a violent coughing fit, that had Drew supporting me so that I wouldn't fall over.

"It's impossible, you're my daughter, why would they mark you?" she asked, caring more that it would affect her reputation then the fact that I was freaking marked.

"I don't know mom." I said.

"Don't call me that! You're not my daughter if you're one of them!" she said with such discuss that it made my stomach feel uneasy.

"Mom!" I said pleadingly.

"I don't ever want to hear from you, do you have any idea what this would do to me if anyone found out what you've become?" she said.

"Mom." I said in a broken whisper.

"Goodbye, don't ever contact me again." She said then hung up.

I didn't feel right, I felt like a part of me had just been ripped out. It was too much, too much at one time. I passed out, too quickly for Drew to catch me, so I hit my head very hard.

I woke up in a marvellous world. Something I had never seen before. There was a woman standing not far from me, looking out into the world. She was beautiful, so beautiful that there were no words that could be used to describe this magnificent woman. She suddenly turned to looked at me.

"I see you're awake, daughter." She said with a wonderful musical chiming voice that sounded like heaven.

"Who are you, and where am I?" I asked sounding a lot less graceful. I blushed deeply.

"You are in the Otherworld for now, your spirit has left your body to come to me. I am known as plenty of different woman such as Changing Woman, Gaea, Grandmother Spider, and even Dawn." She started then gave me a stunning wink. "But the world you are now entering, knows me as Nyx." She finished.

"You're the Vampyre Goddess." I said, sounding intimidated.

"Do not fear me, my daughter; I am here to help you find your future destiny.

"Find my destiny? I just want to find a place where I can fit in. I just want to find a way to cope with my new life, how am I supposed to find my destiny?" I asked her.

"Believe in yourself, Dawn Golding, you will become the twin, equally, if not more powerful than my first Daughter of Night, which will make you my second true Daughter of Night… in this age. The first being Zoey Redbird, whom you will soon meet. You are special. Accept that about yourself, and you will begin you understand the true power in your uniqueness. Within you is combined the magic blood of ancient Wise Woman and Elders, as well as insight into and understanding of the modern world." She walked up to me and continued "Danishia Golding, Daughter of Night, I name you my eyes and ears in the world today, a world where good and evil are truly struggling for find balance." She finished gracefully.

"But I'm sixteen; I just found out that my life is now completely turned upside down. How and I supposed to become your eyes and ears?" I asked her.

She laughed musically. "My dear Dawn, you are wise beyond your years, believe in yourself and you will find a way. But remember, darkness does not always equate to evil, just as light does not always bring good.

Then the almighty powerful goddess Nyx, leaned down and kissed my forehead, and for the third time today, I passed out.

"Dawn! Wake up!" I felt Drew shaking me hard again.

"Do not move her! She could be gravely injured!" I heard the tracker yell at Drew.

I started to open my eyes, and I made out the blurry figures of the tracker, and Drew leaning over me. I started to sit up, but immediately fell backward because of a big pain in the back of my head, but this time the trackers hand where there to cushion my fall.

"Thanks" I mumbled. "Help me sit up please." But instead of doing that, he picked me up and brought me over to the couch, where me lay me down. My sight was back to normal. Drew sat down on the floor next to me while the tracker checked her head. Drew took my hand and lanced his finger through mine.

"Out of curiosity, what's your name?" I asked the tracker.

"Erik." He said.

"How long have you been a tracker?" I asked him.

"A few days. You're the first person I found." He said. "Wow, your wound is already healed, which is odd." Then he looked at my face and gasped.

"What?" I asked. Drew looked and said.

"Your mark is filled in Dawn."

"Impossible." I got up and walked to my bathroom, completely ignoring my dizziness.

I looked into the mirror, and what they told me was completely true. My outline, was now completely filled in.

"What's wrong with me?" I asked Erik.

"I've only seen this happen to one other fledgling, and she is the most powerful person I know. Her name is Zoey Redbird. I think that I'm going to take you to her, instead of to the House of Night." He said.

"Won't I die if I'm not around Vampyres?" I asked him.

"There are Vampyres there, don't worry." He said. "We have to go now, before anyone finds out about you." He said then grasped my forearm and started leading me towards his car.

"Wait!" I heard Drew call out. I'd completely forgotten about Drew. Erik let go of my arm and said.

"Say goodbye, and make it quick."

I walked up to Drew. He took me into his arms and gave me a hug.

"I'm sorry" I whispered into his ear.

"Why are you sorry?" he asked me.

"For leaving you alone." I explained to him.

"This isn't the end, I'm not going to let it end like this." He said then gave me a big kiss. I kissed him back with everything I had, then pulled away and whispered into his ear.

"I'll text or call you later okay." Then gave him one more quick kiss and turned towards Erik's car.

Once again, I didn't realize that I was crying, until Erik handed me a big box of Kleenex. To start a conversation I asked

"So. Who's this Zoey you were talking about?"

"She's special, like you. Nyx gifted for with an affinity for all of the Elements. I dated her for a little bit, but let's not get into that. She arrived at the House of Night, and her mark was filled in, like yours." He looked at my mark, then back on the road.

"That's also when things started going bad. Red fledgling and vampyre's where created. Neferet started acting differently. I'm not supposed to tell you any of this, but I think it' s better so that you don't fall into Neferet's plot. She' s pure evil. Don't ever trust or believe her."

Great, I'm playing right into hell on earth.

"Anyways, I'll let Zoey tell you the rest later."

"Okay" I said trying to sound cool with it.

"I know it's a lot to take in, it'll get easier eventually." He said sympathetically.

"I think I'm going to take a nap. I'm actually really tired."

"Go ahead. We have at least another three hours." He said.

"Okay." And it didn't take very long for me to fall asleep.

"Wake up Danishia, we're here." I felt someone shaking my shoulders. I was immediately wide awake.

"Please do not call me Danishia. Call me Dawn."

"Will do, Dawn" he said with a smile. I smiled in return and got out of the car and stretched. I looked around, and we were at some kind of depot.

"Would it kill them to make it look nicer?" I asked sarcastically.

"They're kind of buzzy." He explained.

"Do you have an answer to everything?" I asked Erik.

"Maybe." He said with a big smile.

I laughed and walked towards the doors.

"Erik! What in the hell are you doing here!" a girl coming outside asked.

"Bringing someone to see Zoey." He told her. "Dawn, this is Aphrodite. She's not very nice" he explained. Aphrodite looked like Barbie, only not as fake. She had long blond hair, blue eyes, a very short skirt, black stiletto boots, and a designer jacket.

"Oh Goddess, your mark is filled." Aphrodite said. "I'll bring her with me." She said then gestured me to come. "You can leave now Erik. Go do whatever the hell you dumb Trackers do." She said then turned her back and started to walk away.

I waved Erik goodbye and followed Aphrodite. Once we passed through the door, we were greeted by some vampyre guy who laced his fingers through Aphrodite's, which made her smile at him.

"This is my warrior, Darius." Aphrodite told me.

"Merry meet." He said, then offered his hand. I gave him mine, but to my surprise, he grasped my forearm and shook it.

"Hello." I said.

"Have you seen Zoey?" Aphrodite asked Darius.

"I think she was in her room with Stark." Darius said.

"Ew. I need to show her Dawn." She gestured towards my mark. Darius looked at it and smile.

"It seems the Goddess has some great things in mind for you." He said.

"Thanks, I think." I said to him and plastered a small smile on my face.

"I suggest you cover your eyes while we go find Zoey and Stark. They could be doing the Nasty's." she said then mocked gagging.

I suddenly realized that I didn't feel sick anymore. I guess that there were enough vampyres around here for me not to get sick. We went down a set for stairs, and followed a long Hallway up to the end.

Aphrodite know on the door three time then waited for someone to open the door. No one came.

"Damn it Stark! Open the fucking door!" she yelled at the door.

"We're busy Aphrodite" someone said from the other side of the door.

"Zoey, believe me when I say that I wouldn't interrupt if it wasn't important. Hurry your ass up and open the damn door!"

It took a little while, but finally a girl came and opened the door. This girl must have been a vampyre, because her mark was filled in, and she had more tattoo then I'd ever seen on anyone, but they were so beautiful and intricate. I'd never seen anything like this in my life.

"What do you wa-" she started to say, until she noticed me and my mark.

"Sweet Nyx." She said breathlessly.

"And I leave her with you." Aphrodite said then walked away. When I turned back around to face Zoey, there was a guy standing behind her. He was so hot! I blushed deeply as I realized they were waiting for me to say something.

"Um, I just got marked around 6 o'clock, then a little bit later, I felt and hit my head, then passed out, and I woke up and my mark was filled." I didn't mention the vision I had with Nyx.

"Did you see Nyx when you were passed out?" Zoey asked me as if she read my mind.

"Um yeah." I said then I gasped, as I realized that this was the Zoey that she was talking about.

"Oh goddess, she told me I was to become the twin of the first Daughter of Night, Zoey Redbird" I saw the guys I figured was Stark tense when I said Zoey's name.

"Oh goodness, you must come in and tell me everything that has happened since you have been marked, as I will inform you on what's going on." She said then walked over to her bed, where Stark followed, and made sure she had everything she needed.

I followed them in, sat in the chair at the desk, and told them everything I knew.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey Guys. I'd like to start off by saying that last summer i got really into the house of night books, and i was inspired to write this fanfiction. I already have it published on quizilla, but i thought i'd give it a go on this website.**

******DISCLAIMER**** I own nothing of the house of night. I only wrote this out of boredem. **

**Please review and let me know what you think about this :)**

**Chapter 3**

_Stark POV._

I felt uneasy about this new girl. She reminded me a lot about Zoey. Actually, now that I got a good look at her, she had a lot of the same features, the same skin tone, only she was a lot shorter, but she already said that was because she was a gymnast.

I felt sad for her, but I don't know why. Could it be because, she was now also involved in this big mess, with Neferet and Kalona.

"When is your birthday?" Stark asked Dawn completely out of the blue.

"This really suck because everyone always meshes it in with Christmas, but it's on December 24th. Why?"

"Oh my Goddess, I was born on December 24th too!" Zoey explained.

"Who're your parents?"

"I don't know my biological parents. I was put up for adoption after birth. My adoptive mother only wanted me for attention. I'm pretty sure you know her. Martha Golding."

"OhmyGoddess, your mother is so famous!" Zoey started saying

At that exact moment, there was a soft rasping on the door, followed by someone saying

"u-we-tsi-a-ge-yv, are you here?"

"Grandma Redbird!" Zoey explained in happiness.

I got up and went to open the door for Zoey's Grandma Redbird. She looked at me and smiled then said.

"Hello, a-ni-tsv-ya"

I laughed as she called me the Cherokee word for rooster.

"Hello Mrs. Redbird." I said politely smiling at the wise woman.

Zoey rushed up to her grandmother and gave her a big hug.

"I've missed you Grandma!" she said happily.

"As I've missed you, u-we-tsi-a-ge-yv." He said still hugging Zoey. Then looked around the room and noticed Dawn sitting uncomfortably on the bed. She walked up to her and asked

"You must be one of Zoey's new friends that she hasn't told me about yet." Then she gave Dawn a quick hug. Dawn smiled in return.

"Actually Grandma, this is Dawn. She's just been marked earlier today. Nyx seems to have gifted her, as she's gifted me, because her mark is filled in, like mine was." She said then looked at me and smiled. I felt her become uncomfortable.

"Is it possible that Dawn and I are sister, I mean twins that were separated at birth?" that caught all of dawn and I's attention.

"Oh u-we-tsi-a-ge-yv, I've been trying to tell you for some time, but then you were marked, and then all your troubles. I just didn't know how to tell you. Your mother and I were supposed to tell you when you turned 18, but I wanted to tell you earlier." Both Zoey and Dawn started crying. Dawn now knew who her birth mother was, only she was dead.

"I can't believe this!" Zoey cried. I walked up to her and tried to hold her, comfort her, sooth her, but she pushed me away.

"Your mother didn't know what to do. It broke her heart. We didn't have enough money after your father left, because he took everything with him. She tried to keep you both, but in the end, she didn't have a choice." Mrs. Redbird started crying as well.

"We tried to find you" he said directly to Dawn "but we couldn't, someone had adopted you, and we weren't allowed to contact you. It gravely hurt us all." She finish. "I'm terribly sorry my u-we-tsi-a-ge-yv's

I grabbed the box of Kleenex, and offered some to everyone.

"Is there anything else I should know about?" Zoey asked angrily. "If not could you please leave us alone for the time being. I need time to think and figure things out. Please go and tell everyone that I won't be there for supper."

"I'm terribly sorry Zoey-bird." Mrs. Redbird said.

"Stark, please help Grandma over to Stevie-Rae's room for now, and come back, oh and could you please get a room for Dawn. I'm sure she would like to settle in" Zoey told me and I saw Dawn nod in agreement to what she had just said.

So I left with grandma redbird and Dawn. I knew that Zoey would pull herself together, until I made her talk about it later, which is probably what she wanted to do.

After making sure that Dawn had everything she needed, I left her alone, and went back to Zoey, where I found her crying softly, sitting on the corner of her bed.

I sat down beside her, as she leaned into me.

"You want to talk about it?" I asked her.

"No. I've got to put this behind me. I can't dwell on the past." She said, trying to sound strong, and I would of let it go, if it wasn't for the fact that she started crying hard against my chest. I hated seeing her this sad. It killed me inside.

I repositioned myself on the bed, so that I was reclining on the mountain of pillows, Zoey crawled up to me.

"Can you do something for me Stark?" Zoey asked me.

"Anything for you, my Queen." I said automatically.

"Can you kiss me the way that makes forget everything? Please". She said shyly.

I gave her my best cocky smile. "You don't have to beg to get me to kiss you." Then I leant in and kissed her. I had to concentrate very hard to remember everything that was going on.

"I love you Stark" she told me, which almost made my head explode with joy.

"You know I love you too Zoey" I said then kissed her more.

She rolled on top of me and kissed me more deeply, in a way that I could only think about her. We both sat up, still kissing, as she was sitting on my lap. We both pulled our shirts off, than she got off and pulled down her pants, so that she was only in her bra and panties. I could see all of her tattoos, and it was breathtaking.

"You're beautiful" I told her then as she came back into my safe grip, I kissed her like there was no tomorrow. We rolled around on the bed, until I was on top of her. I let my hands wander around her body, tracing all of her tattoos, that I had memorised the placement.

"Distract me. Make me think of nothing but you." She whispered into my ear.

"Are you sure?" I asked her.

"Mm. I'm positive" she whispered sexily.

For the rest of the time, all I could think was, Oh Goddess, thank you for letting Zoey love me.

It was nearing 4o'clock in the morning. Zoey and I got dressed and made our way to the dining hall, holding hands, and smiling non-stop at each other. She was clearly more happy then she was earlier, but there was still something that was bothering her.

"Do you want to stop by Dawn's room?" I asked her.

"May as well." She said. I could feel that she was nervous.

"Zoey, don't be nervous. She's your sister, and even more than that, she's your twin. You guys have an unbreakable bond. Kinda like ours, but different." I said giving her a smile.

"I know" she said to me.

And then, out of nowhere, I walked smack into Erik the great.

"Watch were you're goin' man." I complained to him.

"Oh Zoey! I was looking for you." Erik said to her, completely ignoring me.

"What do you want?" she asked sounding pissed. I smiled in satisfaction.

"Did Aphrodite bring you Dawn?" he asked sounding really concerned.

"Yeah." She said then pulled me as she started walking away.

"You used to be a lot nicer!" he whined. She just laughed.

"And you used to _act_ nice. Big difference" she finished then turned and kissed me right in his face. My smile got even bigger against her lips. I put my arms around her waist and held her closer. It didn't take very long for Erik to storm away.

"Thanks" she said.

"You welcome" I said with yet another cocky grin. She hit my arm. "Ow." I said then rubbed the stop she'd hit.

"Sorry." She said sarcastically and started laughing. I joined her with that laughter.

We continued walking until we got to Dawn's door. It opened as I lifted my arm to knock on the door.

"Oh Goddess!" Zoey exclaimed at the surprise.

"Hi" Dawn said casually, trying to hide her surprise.

Zoey turned to look at me and said "Can we have a few minutes to figure things out?"

"Anything for you." I said with a slight smile, hiding the fact that I really didn't want to leave her alone.

"I'll be fine." She said then kissed me on the lips really quick.

"I know. And if you're not, I won't be very far" I told her then gave her a quick kiss, before she walked into Dawn's room and closed the door softly. I knew that I could probably hear everything if I concentrated, but I respected and trusted Zoey a whole lot more than that. Besides, if she wants me to know, she'll probably tell me later.

So I took my Ipod out of my pocket, pressed play, and waited for Zoey and Dawn to finish.

_Dawn_

"Thanks for all the stuff," I told Stark. "If I need anything else, I'll find you." I said with a smile. "Go find Zoey, I think she might need you." I finished.

He smiled and said "I know she will." Then turned around and walked towards Zoey's room. I closed my door, and started putting away all of my stuff.

After I was done with that, I took my phone from my pocket and dialled Drew's number. It didn't take very long for him to answer.

"Dawn?" he said after the first ring.

"Yeah, it's me" I said.

"Are you okay." He asked.

"Yeah. I'm not sick anymore because I'm around a bunch of vamps." I told him.

"That's good, I think." He said.

"Actually, it's pretty cool here. The other fledglings didn't even say anything about my Mark. You know that Zoey girl that Erik was talking about, well she's not a Vampyre yet, but she has a bunch of Marks already on her body." I told him.

"That's good." He said sympathetically.

"Yeah, but there's a bunch of bad stuff that come with it, and guess what! I'm gonna end up just like her." I explained everything, for Kalona, to Neferet, to even Nyx.

"And it doesn't end there." I said.

"What else could there be?" he asked me.

"This isn't as out there. It's actually pretty normal." I said. "I found out who my birthmother is." I felt myself starting to tear up.

"That's great Dawn!" he said happily.

"Not so much. She's dead Drew. She was killed by Neferet."

"Oh god. Are you okay?" he asked me.

"I don't know. That's not it. You know Zoey? She's my Twin. We were separated at birth." I told him then started crying.

"Don't cry Dawn. This is good, out of everything that has happened, at found a sister, a twin even." He said trying to cheer me up.

"After all these years, hoping to find my real mother. Who am I kidding? I should of known that it wouldn't be a fairy-tale." I said.

"I hate to tell you this Dawn, but I have to go or I'm going to be late for the gym."

"Oh, right. Um I've got to go to. I think it's supper time." I said.

"Dawn, I love you." He said.

"Me too." I said then hung up. Then I started crying even more. Everything sucked right now. I hope that things start getting better.

After a while, I pulled myself together. I realized that I was actually really hungry. The last thing I ate was popcorn, like 12 hours ago. I got up to go to try to find the kitchen, but when I opened the door to my bedroom, I found Zoey lifting her arm, ready to knock at my door. It took everything I had not to scream and pee myself.

"Oh Goddess!" Zoey exclaimed at the surprise.

"Hi" I said casually, trying to hide my surprise.

Zoey turned to look at Stark and said "Can we have a few minutes to figure things out?"

"Anything for you." he said with a slight smile, though he looked like he really didn't want to leave her alone.

"I'll be fine." She said then kissed him on the lips really quick.

"I know. And if you're not, I won't be very far" Stark told her then gave her a quick kiss, before she walked into my room and closed the door softly.

"How are you doing?" she asked.

"I don't know." I said.

"Did anyone say anything about your mark?" she asked.

"Um, I haven't seen anyone." I told her.

"Then why do you look like you've been crying?" she asked.

"I just got off the phone with Drew." I told her about Drew, and about our recent realisation.

"I used to have someone like Drew. His name was Heath, and I still love him, but uh, Kalona killed him." she told me.

"What!" I asked

"When we were in Italy." She said.

"What about Stark?" I asked.

"Stark is my guardian/boyfriend. Heath was my consort. For vampyres, it's normal to have them both." She said.

"Was Stark cool with it?" I asked. She had two boyfriends at once.

"Let's just say that my love life isn't the easiest thing. I've screwed up a lot." She told me

"How?" I asked.

"Um, I don't really like talking about this with anyone, but since your my twin, I guess I can trust you." She said. "When I got marked, I was sort of dating Heath. Then I got to the House of Night, and Heath came to try to bust me out, but I imprinted with him. Then I started dating Erik Night." She briefly explained what imprinting was.

"Erik was not really cool with Heath, but then he turned into a Vampyre, and at the time, the Vampyre poet-laureate at the school was flirting with me, so one night, I was upset and Loren found me. We imprinted, which broke my imprint with Heath, and we also slept together. That was my first time and I regret it soooo much. Anyways, Erik kinda walked in on us. So he broke up with me."

"As it turns out," she continued "Loren was only using me, because Neferet had told him to. Then my friends didn't trust me and I had no one, except Aphrodite, who is kinda like a sister to me."

"How does Stark fit into any of this?" I asked.

"Well, while I had sworn of boys, Stark had transferred to our House of Night, and we kind of had a couple of moments. And then he died, but as he was dying, we kinda fell in love, if that makes any sense. And well, after a while, he became my warrior, then when he saved me from the otherworld, he became my guardian, and I don't know what I would do without him."

"Wow. That must have been hard altogether." I said.

"Take my advice, don't ever do that. The consequence really sucks." She said.

"Will do." I said.

"What was your life like before you were marked?" Zoey asked me.

"My life was already nothing like normal. I was an elite Olympic hopeful gymnast."

"I thought I saw your face before!" Zoey said.

"Maybe. Anyways, nationals where coming up, but I guess I can't go to those anymore, because I'm a fledgling." I said sadly.

"Actually, you still can." Zoey told me.

"What! How?" I asked her.

"Well, a lot a Vampyre have special talents. You could still compete and train, you would just have to cover your mark."

"Where would I train?" I asked already excited and wanting to train.

"Well, there's a gym on the bottom floor, we would just have to buy the equipment, and tell the guys to put it in, and voila!" she said.

"How long would it take?" I asked.

"With Aphrodite's gold card? Not very long. We could have it ready by tomorrow." She said.

"Are you serious! That's amazing." I said.

Zoey smiled and said. "Stark has his archery stuff down there, and the fencing equipment is also there, but there is a lot of room left to put more stuff inside." I could get back to training really soon.

"Is there anything else you might need?" Zoey asked.

"This might be a lot to ask, but I sort of need to keep contact with my old coach." I said.

"I'm sure something could be arranged." Zoey said.

Out of nowhere, my stomach growled. I laughed with Zoey.

"We should go eat. I'll introduce you to everyone. They shouldn't gawk at your mark, but I can't guarantee anything."

"I'll survive." I hoped that what I was saying was true.

"I have a feeling that you will too." Zoey said with a smile. We both got up and I followed her to the door. As soon as Stark saw the door open, he was up by Zoey's side. I smiled behind them.

"What are we having for supper?" I ask to start a conversation.

"That depends on what Damien and Stevie-Rae came up with." Zoey said. "It's not blood or raw meat, if that's what you were thinking." She joked. I let out a little sigh of relief. But I was surprised when she said. "but, personally, I have a preference for blood. I find it delicious, but if you ask any other blue fledgling, they find it disgusting."

"You drink blood?" I asked, completely taken off guard.

"Yeah. Human blood is the best, but I also like blood from other sources." She said then bumped her hip against Stark, with made him lose his balance for a second.

"You drink from people!" I asked, my stomach turning.

"Not really. The only human I ever drank from was Heath. We have blood bags. Remember that if we drink from a human, we have more chances of imprinting with them." She said cautiously.

"I don't think I'll be drinking blood for a while." I told them.

"It might be sooner than you think." Stark said.

"I'd rather not." I said.

"Anyways, enough with the blood. Do you smell that?" Zoey asked me.

I smelled around, and caught the scent of some kind of meat.

"Ew. I might of forgot to mention that I'm a vegetarian." I informed them.

"Well hell," she pointed towards an open doorway "that's the dining hall. Stark and I are going to go to the kitchen, and tell Stevie-Rae and Damien to make you something meat free."

"Thank you." I said as we split.

Before entering the door, I took a deep breath and though _you can do this! _As soon as I walked through the door, everyone stopped talking and starred at me. _Oh goddess please help me!_ was the only thing going through my head.


	4. Chapter 4

**HIIE Guys, Thanks for reading the story so far. Enjoy this update :)**

******DISCLAIMER****I DO NOT OWN ANYTHING FROM THE HOUSE OF NIGHT******

Chapter 4

"Hi" I said then waved my hand slightly.

"Hey Dawn." I saw Erik's familiar face "I saved you a seat." He said. Everyone looked from me to him. Then Zoey and Stark appeared through the door.

"I see no one has the common sense to _not_ stare. You all know what it feels like to be the new kid. Yes her mark is filled in like mine was. No, I have no clue what it means. Now have some self-respect, and go on about your own business, and not Dawns." She said then walked up to her seat, as everyone returned to their conversations.

"Thanks." I mouthed at her.

"No problem." She mouthed back with a smile.

I went and sat down at the chair that Erik had saved for me.

"Thanks." I said to him as well.

"How are you liking it so far?" Erik asked.

"Well, besides the fact that I have to start my life over, pretty good." I told him honestly.

"It gets better." He said then offered me some salad, that was being passed around the table. I took a little bit.

A sudden voice in back of me made me jump. "Hi. I'm Stevie-Rae. I've got some spaghetti, with a vegetarian sauce for you." She said with a smile.

"Thanks Stevie-Rae." I told as she left to go take her seat.

"A vegetarian? That interesting. Why are you one?" Erik asked me.

"It's more for my gymnastics then free will. Meat is fattening, and well, that can kill a gymnasts dream." I explained.

"You're a gymnast?" he asked, sounding surprised.

"Sure am." I said with a smile.

"That's so cool. You should show me some time." He said with a flirty smile. I blushed.

"Maybe." I said returning the smile. "What do you do to pass the time?" I asked him.

"Drama. Preforming Arts. It's a passion of mine." He told me.

"Like Shakespeare?" I asked

"Something like that. I was supposed to go to Hollywood, but instead, I was chosen to become a tracker, and I have to serve a four year sentence." He said bitterly.

"I'm sure Hollywood will still want you in four years." I said.

"Maybe." He said with a smile.

I started eating my pasta and only answered questions briefly.

"How soon do you want your equipment put in?" Aphrodite asked from across the table.

"Um, as soon as possible."

"Well, I'm gonna go order it, I think they could have it done within 2 hours. Is there anything else you might need?" I was thinking, and there wasn't anything else, except

"Crap. I didn't think that I'd be able to continue, but I need leo's, and sweat pants and shorts. I can pay you back." I said.

"Don't worry about it." She said then left the room.

I took another bite of my food.

"That's unusual for Aphrodite. Normally she's all I'm-better-then-every-one-else-don't-talk-to-me-or-I'll-bite-your-head-off." Erik said. I laughed softly.

"That's not very nice." I said.

"You're telling me" he said sarcastically.

"haha." I laughed.

I noticed that most of the fledglings had left, and that everyone was almost done eating. I also realized that I was full, and I had barely touched my food.

"I've got to go. I'll see you later?" Erik asked.

"Maybe." I said.

All of a sudden, I was sitting all alone. As if also noticing that, I heard Zoey say

"Dawn, why don't you come sit with us?" I saw Stevie-Rae and Stark sitting beside her, but there were also another two girls, and two more guys.

I got up and went to go sit beside the girls.

"Hi, I'm Damien, this is Shaunee" he said pointing to darker girl sitting beside me. She waved hello. "Her twin Erin" taken aback, I looked at this very white girl with blond hair. "And this is Rephaim." He said pointing to the guy sitting beside Stevie-Rae, holding her hand.

"Hi." I said shyly.

"Oh and just letting you know," Shaunee said.

"Damien's gay, so don't waste your time shaking that tree." Erin finished for her.

"Ah. Um. How can you guys be twins?" I asked Shaunee and Erin.

"Not biological. More like soul twins. We do everything together. It's like we were separated at birth." Erin said.

I saw Zoey's face flush, I figured that mine did too.

"I need to talk to you guys. Can we meet in my room in half an hour." Zoey asked her friends.

"Sure." They all said simultaneously.

"Um, do you mean me too?" I asked.

"If you want to, but you don't have to."

"I'd rather not. I kind of wanted to find the gym."

She smiled and said. "Just ask someone in the hallway to show you." Then she looked at Shaunee and Erin. "Can you guys go find Aphrodite. She need to be there."

"Okie…" Erin said.

"Dokie." Shaunee finished.

I got up, said goodbye to everyone, and went into the hallway and almost walked right into Erik.

"Just the person I was looking for." He said which made me smile.

"And why where you looking for me?" I asked.

"I don't know." He said then laughed. His laugh was so cute. It's kind of reminded me of Drew's.

Oh goddess, I completely forgot about Drew!

"Um, can you help me find my room?" I had no idea where it was.

"What do you want to do, in your room?" he asked, giving me a cocky grin. I smacked his arm. "Sorry, that was out of line." He apologised.

"Yes it was. You know I like Drew, hell you saw me realize it." I said to him.

"I did." He confirmed.

"Can we just find my room?" I asked, getting uncomfortable.

"Just follow me." he lost all the charm in his voice. Instead, there was a little bit of hurt.

"Sorry. I just don't want to do anything right now. I'm so confused, it's not even funny. I just found out that my birthmother is dead, and that I have a twin." I said, then realized that he didn't know anything about that because he sent me a questioning look.

"Twin?" he asked.

"It's a long story. The short version is that Zoey is my long lost twin. We got separated at birth." I looked over to him, and he looked like he'd just took a slap to the face, but almost as soon as I'd noticed it, he composed himself and said.

"How did you guys found out?"

"I had a vision with Nyx, and her Grandmother showed up earlier and told us." I told him.

"How do you feel about this?" he asked.

"I just really don't know." Just then, Erik stopped walking and I realized that we were at the door to my room. "Can you wait here a little bit? I want to go to the gym, but I have to change first." I explained.

"Yeah. I'll wait for you." But I wasn't sure what he was talking about.

I rushed into my room, and found a bunch of custom leotards laying across my bed. There were some of every color. There were also a bunch of comfy shorts. I made a mental note to thank Aphrodite the next time I saw her.

I changed into a simple sleeveless dark purple one, and put shorts on top. Then I grabbed my dark bench sweater and took it on top. I went into the bathroom to tie my hair into a ponytail. When I came out, I noticed that my gym bag from at home had been brought here. I smiled and picked it up and walked out of the room.

"Ready?" Erik asked, flashing a smile.

"Yep." I said then smiled back.

"Can I watch you train?" he asked as we started walking towards the gym.

"No! I get gross and sweaty!" I said too fast. I composed myself and said. "Sorry. I don't really care, but I won't look too pretty." I told him.

"You didn't come across as superficial." He teased.

"And you didn't come across as judgemental." I teased back.

"Points for you." He said.

"I know." I said then we both started laughing.

"How long have you been a gymnast?" he asked changing the subject.

"I started gymnastics when I was six, and I fell in love with it." I answered his question.

"Damn! How can you do something for 10 years?" he asked.

"It's not that hard when it gets you closer to fulfilling your dream. I used to get up at 4'o clock in the morning, to go train at 5'o clock. Then I'd go to school, and I'd go train for another 5 hours." I informed him.

"Goddess. I used to have trouble waking up for school, which started at 10'o clock. I never was a morning person. I'm still not a morning person." He told me.

"Who would've guessed" I said.

Then I realized that we were at a set of stairs. "The gym is just down these stairs." Erik told me.

I followed the stairs that led to two sets of doors. Lockers rooms.

"I'll see you on the other side." I said to him then went through the doors. I put my bag into one of the lockers that didn't have a lock, then continued through the next set of doors that led into the gym.

I first impression was that the gym was ginormous. I smiled at my excellent use of the word.

I went over to the floor mat, and started stretching. I always stretched before starting my gymnastics. I noticed Erik sitting not too far away on a bench watching me.

About twenty minutes later, I walked over to the uneven bars, and started to adjust them to my height. I chalked my hands and tested it out, making sure that it moved okay. I put on my grips, to prevent my skin for ripping. I noticed that everyone in the gym where now watching my every move.

I took off my sweater, and of course, got it full of chalk. Then I went to stand in front of the high bar, and tested that one out as well. After making sure that they were both stable and after applying chalk to both of the bars, I went to my starting point, in front of the lower bar, and raised my arms, ready to start my routine. I figured I might as well do a simple routine, so I don't fall and make an idiot out of myself.

So I took off, leaping on to the lower bar. I got momentum, and did a transition to the higher bar. I did 3 rotations, then once I back at the top, I did a full turn, flowed by another one after a rotation. After doing a couple more rotations, I did a perfect release, turning myself around.

I built my momentum back up and transitioned over back to the lower bar, where I did 3 rotations and did yet another transition over to the higher bar. Now I needed more speed to be able to do my dismount, so I did 4 fast rotations, then did my one and a half twist dismount.

The only problem with the dismount was that I took a big step forward, making some of my observers gasp. I raised my arms to show that I finished, and was drowned by the sound of applause. Erik rushed over to me and said.

"That was amazing!"

"Not really, I barely had my ankles together, and my dismount was extremely sloppy. That won't win me nationals." I said breathless. Erik handed me a water bottle. "Thanks." I said then took a big gulp then went to go redo my routine.

After doing the routine about 10 times, I decided to go do a different apparatus, the balance beam. Erik followed me. I wanted to try some new stuff.

"Hey Erik, can I ask you a favour?" I asked him.

"Sure" he replied.

"I'm going to try something new, and I need you to make sure that I don't fall over on the other side." I explained

"Are you sure?" he asked me.

"Yes I'm sure. I'm going to do a handstand mount. I start by pushing myself up so that I'm parallel to the ground. I wait a few seconds, then I push my body so that it's on a 90 degree angle to the ground. That why I need you. I need you to make sure I don't go too far, and that I can turn afterwards and not fall and break my neck." I said then added a smile.

"Can you go get that springboard? I want to practice the motion first." He went and brought me the springboard. "thanks." I said to him.

I jumped on the springboard, trying it out. Then I placed my hands on the beam, where I was going to start. I practiced going the momentum to bring my body parallel to the ground. After trying it a few times, I looked at Erik and said.

"Ready?"

"I think so." He said.

Without giving myself the time to back out, I placed my hands on the beam, and leaped off the board. I held myself in the position for a few seconds, then began to lift my body higher. It took everything not to fall back down. I was almost in the right angle, when I moved to fast and started going backwards, but Erik caught me, before I hit the ground.

"Thanks." I said looking into his eyes. He had really nice blue eyes.

"Are you sure you want to keep doing this?" he asked me.

"Yes, not can you put me down?" he said with a little laugh.

"Right." He said putting me down.

I went to the other side of the beam, ready to try again. I pushed of the board, and found it just as hard to get my body up, if not harder. This time I managed to stay up, with Erik's hands making sure that I wouldn't topple over. I turned my body and let my legs find the beam, and I pushed myself up, so that I was standing. I smiled hugely, and jumped of the beam.

"You did it!" Erik said happily

"With the springboard and your help. It's going to be hell without the springboard to help me up." I explained.

"Can't you do the routine with the springboard?" he asked.

"I don't like that. I feel like I'm cheating." I told him.

"Interesting." He said then passed me my water bottle once again. Then he said.

"You know what I'm dying to see, you doing a vault." My face went blank. I didn't really like the vault. I always freak and stop right in front of it.

"I'd rather not." I said.

"Why not?" he asked.

"I don't have the best history with the vault. But if you really want, I can try." I said then started making my way towards the vault. I adjusted the board to my length and jumped on it a few times. I went to the end of the carpet and centred myself. I was going to do the vault that I've done for years, a Yurchenko, 1½ twist.

I broke into a run and within second, leaped from the springboard, but I moved to quickly, and hit the table too close to the edge, and fell on my butt. I smacked my hands on the floor "Damn It!" I exclaimed.

I went back to the start, determined to secede, and started running again, only this time, I started earlier, and landed it only with a big step.

I kept trying until I got it perfect, which took a while, and Erik stayed with me the entire time. I was breathing heavy when Erik came and handed me another water bottle.

"Thanks." I told him again.

"No problem. Are you ready to leave?" he asked.

"Yeah, I just gotta go get my jacket and grips-" I started saying but then Erik held them up. I smiled at him. "Thanks. Again." I said and we both started laughing. I reached for them, but Erik pulled it away, teasing me.

"You don't want to do that!" I warned him as I reached for my things again.

"I already am" he said then turned and started running away from me. I chased after him, trying to get my stuff. I noticed that we were the only two people left in the gym, and yet, that didn't stop him from running around with my stuff.

Finally, he made the mistake to stop dead in his tracks, and I ran smack into him, knocking us both down.

"Ouch" he said teasingly. Somehow, he ended up on top of me, and was pinning me down. I wrestled with him, and because of my super-gymnast strength, I was now pinning him.

"I'll bet that you never thought that you would be in this situation." I said mocking the fact that I beat him.

"I guess not." He said. I let my guard down, which was a mistake, because almost as quickly, Erik had pinned me back down. I tried to wrestle him, but I was too tired.

"And you thought I would just let you win?" he asked, mocking what I did earlier.

"I guess not." I said then looked into his beautiful blue eyes. He was kneeling over me, but he relaxed his grip. I still wouldn't be able to wrestle myself out if I tried. He let go of one of my hands and used his free arm to move a strand of hair from my face. He got up and help me up, but to my surprise, I almost fell over, and I would've if he wouldn't of caught me.

"You okay?" he asked me

"I'm just tired I guess." I realized that he was still holding me around my waist, I didn't mind the feeling. He made me feel safe.

"Dawn?" he asked.

"Uh-huh?" I asked.

"Tell me you don't feel something." He said. I couldn't because I'd be lying if I said that. He made me feel different, special, accepted, safe. Something I've never felt before.

"I can't" I whispered looking into his eyes again. Then I tilted my head up, and felt his lips meet mine. It was a sweet kiss, different than the ones I had with Drew.

Ohmygoddess! I completely forgot about Drew again, but there was something about Erik. He made me feel good. But I knew that this was wrong. I tried to pull myself away, but I felt very weak kneed.

"What?" Erik asked.

"I'm with Drew." I said. I couldn't look at him anymore.

"Drew can be your consort, I can be your mate." He said.

"Erik, I feel wrong doing this to Drew." I said truthfully.

"So it's not me?" Erik asked.

"No." I said. With that he kissed me again. And as horrible of a person that I was, I kissed him back.

After the kiss I said "What do I do?" I asked him.

"You can break up with him, besides, fledglings are supposed to see humans, in case of imprints."

"I don't know if I can." I told him. Part of me loved Drew, but another part of me felt something for Erik.

"We'll figure something out." He said then changed the subject. "We should get you to your room, you look like your about to pass out." He said with concern.

"I'm fine, just need energy." I said then realized how stupid that sounded.

"Further proof that you need to go to bed. Come on, I'll carry you." He said.

"Other fledglings will notice." I said.

"No they won't. Most of them are sleeping, if not they're in their rooms." He explained.

"Okay" I said as he lifted me into his arms.

I don't really remember much of the trip up to my room.

Once we got to the door I heard someone say

"Erik, what in the hell are you doing" I recognised Zoey's voice.

"She hasn't stopped training and she's almost passed out." He said.

"Why didn't you stop her! You know it's not good for fledglings to damage their body's!" she exclaimed.

"I'm fine. Erik's just being a perfect gentleman." I said, standing up for myself.

"Uh-huh." She said. "I guess I'll talk to you in the morning then." She said then walked away with, I'm guessing Stark. I hadn't really noticed. After Erik got closed the door behind him, he put me down on my bed. I was half-asleep.

"Why don't you hate me?" I asked him.

"What are you talking about?" he said.

"I'm kinda saying no to dumping Drew, and you still like me. Doesn't make any sense." I said.

"I won't ever hate you." He said then kissed my forehead after tucking me in. he started to leave but I grabbed his hand.

"Can you stay here please?" I asked him.

"Alright" he said, than lay down on the covers beside me. I went into his arms, and it didn't take very long for me to fall asleep, in the comfort of his arms.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

I woke up, slightly confused. Then I remembered everything. From being marked to Drew and Erik. I started to sit up, but I felt a giant pain in my arms and legs. Then I felt someone shift positions beside me.

"You're finally up." Erik said.

"Uh-huh." I said lazily.

"Do you know what time it is?" he asked me, and I shook my head saying no. "It's midnight."

"Guess that means we have to sleep a few more hours." I said.

"Actually, were late. Most people wake up around 7 pm. Remember that your days will be turned around." He explained.

"So it's lunch." I said.

"Pretty much." He said then sat up. I sat up two, but leaned on him for support.

"What's wrong?" he asked me.

"My arms are killing me, my legs hurt from vaulting too." I said.

"Oh." He said then put one arm around me and started messaging my arms.

"Mm, feels good." I said then realized how bad that sounded and started laughing with Erik.

"You're pretty amazing." Erik told me.

"How so?" I asked.

"Well, your gymnastics are unbelievable, you're beautiful, smart, considerate of others, and a great kisser." He said the stole a quick kiss from my lips. I returned that with a longer more passionate kiss. Ignoring my pain, I got closer to Erik, and I was sitting on his lap, with his arms around me.

"You make me feel different." I told Erik.

"I don't think that your twin will like the fact that we're together." He said kissing me.

"I don't care. I'll be with who I chose to be with." I said returning another kiss.

"Good." Erik said.

I heard my phone vibrate from the table. I kissed Erik one more time, got up off the bed, stretched, and grabbed my phone. It was a text from Drew. My perfect world crashed.

I opened it. And it said.

"Thinking of you, you know I love you."

"Me too." I replied then turned off my phone, and slumped back down on my bed.

"Drew?" he summed it up in one word. I nodded, feeling horrible.

"What should I do?" I asked him, hiding my face in his chest.

"Ask Zoey if you can go see him, and figure things out." He said, but he didn't look too happy about it, and I didn't blame him.

"I'm sorry." I said.

"You could kiss me, make me forget about it." He joked. I kissed him just to play along. He made me feel good, special, wanted. I realized how fast everything had happened, but it didn't seem to matter, I still cared a lot for him.

Somehow, I ended up back on his lap, and making out with him. He held me so tight and closely, I wanted more.

And I didn't even notice Zoey standing by my door until she said.

"I see you've become quite at home." I jumped and quickly got off of Erik, but I was blushing a lot. Erik kept his arm around my waist as I sat beside him.

"I guess so." I said filling in the awkward silence.

"I've been needing to talk with Dawn. Erik, can you leave?" she said sounding pissed at him.

"Whatever Z." he said, kissed my cheek and got up and left my room.

"Do you have to sound that angry?" I asked her.

"There's just something about him that makes me so angry." She said.

"Where's Stark?" I asked her.

"In the kitchen, getting me something." She said then looked down.

"Blood?" I asked.

"Yes. I need blood, it's what keeps me going. Anyways, that not what I came here to talk to you about. I told everyone about us being twins this morning, and I need you to try something."

"What?" I asked her.

"I can evoke the Elements, and I'm wondering if you can too."

"Elements?" I asked.

"Air, fire, water, earth and spirit." She explained. "I'm going to evoke them, but you have to tell me if you feel something." She turned and faced the east.

"Air, I need you just momentarily." I felt a cleansing breeze blowing my way. Then she turned to face the south, "Fire, I need you too." I felt warmth beyond belief, but it felt good. She turned towards the West and said. "Water, please come too." I could smell the ocean. Finally, she turned to the north, and said "Earth please come and join me as well." I could smell fields and grass. Then she turned to me and said, "Spirit, may you please come to me." I suddenly felt like the weight of the world wasn't on my shoulders anymore. She finished by saying, "Thank you, you may all leave." And those feelings where gone.

"Oh goddess, I felt everything." I said happily.

"That's great!" she exclaimed.

"What does that mean?" I asked her.

"I have no clue, but Aphrodite thinks it has something to do with us fighting darkness, which wouldn't surprise me.

"Do you ever just have a normal day?" I asked her.

"Not really." She answered honestly.

"That's great." I said.

She completely changed the subject by saying "Didn't you tell me that there was someone else, other than Erik?"

"Yeah, I wanted to talk to you about that. I need to go see Drew." I told her.

"I figured you would say that, which is why I sent Darius and Aphrodite to go get him." Zoey said.

"You did what!" I almost screamed.

"Look, either you need closure, or you need him her as your consort." She said.

"If he's my consort, doesn't that mean I need to drink from him?" I asked.

"Not really, the drinking part is from the imprint, which you don't have because you've never drank from him." she said.

"Erik won't be happy. I think I have to get closure for me and Erik to work." I said.

"Follow your heart and your instinct. Don't ever doubt yourself because that's when you can get hurt." She said wisely.

"I know it's really soon, but I really like Erik, and I don't want to hurt him, or lose him." I said.

"I know how you feel. I've been in yourself." She said.

"How long do I have until Drew gets here?" I asked.

"Actually, I think you have about another hour. Go take a shower, you look like crap."

"Thanks." I said sarcastically "But I know that's probably true." I got up and groaned at the pain in my muscles.

"What's wrong?" Zoey asked me.

"My arms hurt. You try hurling yourself into a handstand position and keeping yourself there, on a balance beam, starting on the floor." I said putting emphasis on the difficulty, and on the pain that it caused me afterwards.

"I'll pass, because I'd probably end up breaking my neck." She joked.

"I'm gonna take my shower." I said heading in that direction. "Quick question." I said poking my head through the bathroom, catching Zoey before she left. "Do we have uniforms?"

"No. Just don't wear anything disrespectful, or you will be asked to change." She said.

"Okay." I said then went back into the bathroom. Did I ever mention that Stark gave me Aphrodite's old room, before she went with Darius, So I have a very fancy shower. I forgot what they were called, but it's the ones that have multiple shower heads, very relaxing.

After taking my shower, I blow dried my hair, and decided to curl it, which took me about ten minutes. I went to my closet, and put on my white skinny jeans that made my butt look good, then I got a pink and white cropped shirt that I got a garage not too long ago. I did my make-up, but didn't put very much on, so I didn't look too overdone.

A sudden knock on the door made my heart skip a beat in surprise. I rushed over to the door and opened it quickly, and Erik walked into my room.

"Z told me that you were taking a shower, so I got you a bite to eat." He said handing me a garden salad.

"Thanks." I said and started picking at it.

"You look pretty." He said.

I smiled big and once again said "Thanks." Then gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

"What are you doing today?" Erik asked me. I guess Zoey didn't tell him anything.

"Um, Zoey got people to go get Drew, which I didn't have any say in. So he's coming to visit." I told him honestly.

"That's why you got dressed up." He said looking defeated.

"He shouldn't be here long. I kinda did this more for you." I said trying to make him feel better.

"Really?" the actor said believing me.

"Yep. Um, I think that it's better if we don't do anything in front of Drew. He won't be happy with what I'm going to tell him, and I think that you being here would make it worse for him." I said.

"I get that. What are you going to tell him?" he asked sounding hopeful.

"I haven't quite figured it out, but I know that I have to say goodbye, for good." I said to him.

"Oh." He said then smiled slightly.

I put my salad on my desk, not hungry anymore. I went up to Erik and kissed him. "I can't have Drew. It would ruin his life, and I can't deal with that. I want you." I said to Erik, then kissed him. Erik pulled me closer and kissed me more. It completely made me forget everything I was thinking about.

"Dawn. Please tell me that that's not you." I heard Drew say from behind me. I didn't even notice him.

"Oh goddess. I really have to put a sign for people to knock before entering." I said.

"What are you doing?" Drew asked me. I gave Erik a look that told him to go away, and he resentfully left.

"Drew, let me explain." I asked.

"Explain what! That your cheating on me with the tracker!" he said angrily. "I thought we had more than that." He finished.

"I'm not cheating on you!" I fought back.

"Oh, so for vampyre's, it's normal for you guys to kiss whoever you want, whenever you feel like it." He said. I could see that he was really hurt.

"Not when you put it like that. Listen, we can't be together." I said, trying to keep my voice strong.

"I see that now."

"Drew, I still care about you." I said and he looked like I just gave him a slap in the face.

"You care enough to suck face with another freak." He said blankly.

"This wasn't supposed to go like this, Zoey was supposed to come get me when you got here." I whispered trying to ignore the fact that he just called me a freak.

"What? So you could pretend like nothing was wrong?" he said meanly.

"No, so that we wouldn't be having this conversation." I said. "I'm sorry." I whispered.

"You hurt me Dawn." He said his voice shaky.

"I never meant to."

"How did everything get so messed up?" he asked me.

"Maybe we never should of loved each other. I feel different when I'm with Erik then when I'm with you. Drew, I don't think I love you the same way you love me. Your more like a brother to me then a lover." I said truthfully.

Once again, he looked as if I slapped him in the face. "I didn't know." He said then got up.

"Where are you going?" I asked.

"As far away from here as I can get. I don't want to look at you right now. I traded me for some 'bad-ass-vampyre' who will probably end up hurting you. How can you say that you love him more than me, if you've only known him for two days?" I took into consideration what he was saying, but I knew that Erik was better than that, and that what we had was special.

"Don't talk about Erik like that. I didn't trade you."

"You replaced me!" he shouted at me.

"Drew!" I cried.

"Don't cry. I already pity you, you don't have to cry." He said harshly.

"What happened to you?" I asked, shocked by the way he was acting. "I do care for you. I'm not replacing you. We've been friends for years. Doesn't that mean anything to you?" I asked, tears dropping down my cheeks.

"Shut Up! You disgust me, saying that you care for me. That's such bullshit. If you cared for me, you wouldn't have done this." He hit my metal head bored as if to take his anger out on it. "Shit" he complained, and I saw the long cut that had formed along his hand. I could see the little beads of blood starting to rise from the wound.

"Let me see it, I can help." I told him.

He brought his hand closer to me. There was a sweet smell that was now filling the air. I was becoming marvelled by his blood. Then I realized that I wanted some.

Drew's expression completely changed. I brought his hand closer to my mouth, not knowing what I was doing.

Suddenly, Zoey burst through the doors.

"Don't do it." She said

"But it looks so good." I said stubbornly.

"Erik hold her back." Zoey ordered him.

Erik walked up to me and took me into his arms, and held me tightly, as Zoey tended to Drew's wound.

"Why do I want it?" I asked, I was kinda scared.

"You're experiencing bloodlust. I figured you would be like Zoey, but the idiot managed to cut his hand open, and now you crave it." Erik explained.

"Don't call him an idiot." I said defending Drew, even if he could sometimes be an idiot.

"Drew, you have to leave. I think it would be best if you didn't come back." Zoey told Drew.

I didn't say anything as Drew left. Zoey followed him out the door. I didn't realize that I was crying again until Erik pulled a wad of Kleenex from his pocket.

"Thanks." I whispered, and wiped my face and nose.

"No problem." Erik said.

"Well, that sucked. Drew never wants to see me again." I said to Erik and started crying.

"Think about it. It's better this way because he isn't in danger of anything. You're keeping him safe." Erik said.

"That's true." I said to him.

"I won't leave you. Don't worry about that."

"You heard everything, didn't you?" I asked him.

"It's wasn't hard when he was shouting at you. And it took every ounce of self-control not to come and hit him." he said.

I smiled because I knew that Erik cared about me. I kissed him, and he kissed me back, for a long time. He made me forget everything that just went down, and made me only think about how much of an amazing kisser he was.

I let him pull me over his lap, and hold me tightly. I needed to feel wanted right now, and that was exactly what he was doing. I wrapped my legs around Erik, and let my hands wander around his body, tracing patterns of his back, feeling his abs (which felt amazing).

I know that I should of felt bad, but I didn't. Erik made me forget about my troubles, and made me focus on the better things. Yet another reason why I really liked him. He slightly pulled away, giving us the chance to breath and asked,

"Can I taste your blood?" I nodded in response. Something just felt right about letting him. He moved his mouth towards the side of my neck, and slightly sunk his teeth into my neck, then drank my blood. At first, it hurt only for a moment, but then that was replaced by immediate pleasure. Like unbelievable pleasure. It felt so freaking good. I absently moaned.

He lifted his mouth back to mine, and with blood-socked lips, kissed me. Then, he took my hand, and used my finger nail to make a small slit on his neck. The smell hit me almost right away. I wanted some of his blood. I moved my mouth over to his neck, and put it over the slit he had cut.

As soon as I tasted the blood, my mind exploded from great sensations. It's tasted like nothing I had ever tasted before, and it was so good. I started to suck his neck.

"Oh, yes please Dawn." He moaned. I sucked for a few more seconds, then pulled away. We were both breathing heavy. I looked into his eyes and said.

"I think I might be in love with you Erik." Then kissed him briefly.

"I think that I might be in love with you too." He said then kissed me more. And then, we just sat there, making out, for what seemed like endless time.


End file.
